Lay Me Down
by crazywriter10
Summary: Trip has some issues getting to sleep, but lucky Jon's there to help him. Trip/Archer very mild slash.


This is my first Enterprise fic. Please be kind. Reviews are lovely, if you feel the need. I don't own a damn thing, I'm just borrowing them and having some fun. Enjoy.

* * *

Charles "Trip" Tucker III would never freely admit that he was a ragin insomniac. Sure he had issues falling asleep sometimes but didn't everybody? No, there was no way he was an insomniac – he just had some issues sleeping. Like shutting his mind off enough to get some rest.

So that was why he was on his second night of maybe an hour of sleep, four cups of strong, black coffee, and tinkering with a project in his hole-in-the-wall office in Engineering. No, he wasn't seeing double or shaking slightly, or overly warm. He just kept snagging his sleeves on things, that's why they were tied around his waist.

"Chief?"

Trip looked up at Hess who had stuck her head into his office. "Yeah?"

"There's a circuit relay down that needs your special touch," she said with an apologetic look. Her boss looked exhausted.

Trip put what he was working on down with a sigh, grabbed his toolbelt and followed Hess out to the panel she had been working on. He slid under it to inspect what was going on, squinting to focus. His coffee was wearing off. Closing his eyes, he shook his head to clear it and then opened them again.

"You okay, Chief?" Hess asked. This was usually a quick job for Trip but it seemed to take longer than it should.

Trip's leg jerked followed by a muffled bang and an inventive expletive. He shimmied out from under the panel cradling his left hand and elbow. Hess crouched down next to him, concern in her eyes.

"You okay, Chief?"

"It's working again," Trip said, pushing himself up off the floor with his good hand, swaying slightly. He looked at his hand, fingers red and puffy. "I'm going to go see Phlox…"

"Do I need to –— "

"No, thanks, just – just, clean up." Trip unsteadily walked toward Sickbay, puasing every now and then to clear his head. He was tired, but it was nothing a good cup of coffee wouldn't fix.

"Commander. What can I do for you?" Phlox asked when Trip walked in.

"Burnt myself." He hopped onto a biobed and showed Phlox his hand. The doctor examined the burns, and clucking disdainfully went to get a gauze roll. Trip slumped back and let himself drift.

"Commander?"

He cracked an eye. Phlox had already bandaged his burnt fingers in clean guaze and was now staring at him oddly.

"When was the last time you slept?" the Denobulan asked.

Trip shrugged. He couldn't even remember the last time he'd eaten a decent meal. Not that he was going to say that to the good doctor. He had work to do and couldn't be lying around in Sickbay. Besides, he and Malcolm hadn't done anything relatively stupid to warrant a stay with the good doctor.

"Commander, I strongly urge you to go get some sleep," Phlox said in a tone of voice that said he wasn't merely suggesting so much as ordering.

Trip nodded and thought of his unfinished project. He knew how to finish it, he just needed enough time. He waved goodbye to the doctor and headed back out. Once he was gone, Phlox opened a communication channel. "Sickbay to Archer."

"Archer here."

"Sorry to bother you so late, but aren't you missing something?"

There was a rush of static to indicate Archer's sigh. "Where is he?"

"Engineering."

"Thanks, Doctor. Archer out."

Phlox smiled. If there was anyone to reign in an exhausted work-a-holic Engineer, it was said Engineer's lover who wouldn't take no for an answer.

* * *

Trip rubbed his eyes and picked up the full cup of coffee he'd gotten himself on the way back from Sickbay. His bandages were already starting to get annoying.

"Put the coffee down, Trip."

Tucker almost dropped the damn thing in surprise. He looked over to see Jon standing in the doorway to his office dressed in sweatpants and a t-shirt that was obviously not his. Jon walked in, shutting the door behind him and approached his lover. Trip put the coffee cup down and looked at Jon.

"Baby, you're exhausted," Jon said, stepping close enough to put his hands on Trip's arms, rubbing gently. "I know you've got a lot going through your mind, but you need to sleep."

Trip stepped closer and slid his arms around the taller man's waist, resting his forehead on Jon's chest. It was too strong a compulsion for him to ignore. Jon was his rock, his anchor, the person who kept him grounded when he let himself get too wrapped up in tinkering with something or was stuck in his own headspace. It was with Jon that he relaxed.

"There we go," Jon murmured, moving his hands to the small of Trip's back to rub circles. "Come on, we need to go back to our room and actually put you in a bed." He wrapped an arm around Trip's waist and steered him toward the door and the corridor beyond. Trip was dozing on his feet; every now and then he'd jerk himself more alert. When they finally made it back to the captain's room, Trip was keeping his eyes open by sheer force of will. Jon locked the door behind them and walked over to his lover, pulling the engineer's sweaty undershirt free from the confines of his uniform. Trip put his arms up and allowed his lover to pull the shirt completely off.

"Can't do it," he muttered, shaking his head. Jon pressed a kiss to the warm forehead and unzipped the rest of Trip's uniform. Once he had the younger man in only his boxers he led him to the bed and gently pushed him down.

"Yes, you can," Jon said, urging Trip onto his front and pulling the blanket up to his waist. "Just relax, baby." The words were soft to go with the gentle stroking of his hand on the skin of Trip's bare back. The engineer tried valiently to keep his eyes open and failed miserably. Jon kept up the light touch until Trip's breathing evened out and then returned to his desk to look at a PADD. He hadn't been reading more than five minutes when he heard rustling. Looking over provided him with a picture of Trip moving restlessly beneath the covers. Jon sighed. He should have known it wouldn't be that easy. Sometimes Trip needed a little help to shut his mind off to get some rest. And he desperately needed it.

Jon abandoned the PADD and went back to the bed, watching Trip's eyes flutter open. Taking off his shirt, Archer crawled under the covers and, after much poking and prodding, wound up with Trip's back pressed to his chest, a leg between the engineer's and a hand on the warm skin and fine hair near Trip's navel. He smoothed his thumb backward and forward over the soft, warm skin, his other hand tangled in the unruly blond hair, thumb stroking the sensitive skin behind his ear.

"Sleep, baby," Jon whispered, nuzzling the back of Trip's neck. "I got you; just let it go."

With a sigh Trip's body went limp and Archer knew he was out like a light. It was a good thing he'd told T'Pol to take the bridge tomorrow and informed Leutenant Hess that Trip wouldn't be anywhere near Engineering for at least twenty-four hours. Pressing a kiss to the back of his lover's neck, Jon closed his own eyes. Sometimes all people needed to stay awake was an idea and a pot of strong coffee, but to fall asleep required something else entirely. It required a gentle-loving hand and the presence of the right person. Jonathan Archer was Trip's anchor when he couldn't shut his mind off. Everybody needs a little help now and then, Starship Captain and Warp Engineer alike.


End file.
